Terrible 2s give way to scarier, wicked 3s

“Because I Said So” column for The Commercial Appeal

May 14, 2009

I’ve known anxieties, real and imagined, mature and juvenile, and I’ve overcome a lot of those fears. But there is something in our lives now, in our very house, that terrifies me in a way I could never have imagined. My family moves with fright, tip-toeing down hallways and peeking around corners.

We live in terror of Genevieve, a strong-willed little girl who will be turning 3 years old in two weeks.

The Terrible Twos have nothing on the threes. And alliteration does not make the difficult times any easier. Terrible Twos are bad, but the God-awful Threes are worse. So much worse, in fact, that no parent has the time to name this stage. A naming better left to Dante anyway … (read more)